Newbie here. Redoing the wood on my dash board with a set from Madera Concepts.

To save me time and a lot of head scratching, can someone give me a few pointers as to how these panels are removed? My car is a 75 JH5 with the real wood panels, not the vaneer.

Just poking around, it seems some knobs are difficult to remove. I can't figure out how to get the panel light dimmer switch out. Do I just pull the knob really hard to get it off and allow the switch to come out the back? Also the choke knob seems to suffer the same problem.

The pieces with the full wood are all adhered with glue, there are no screw on bits, or easily removable ones.

Assuming you've recieved the kit from Maderia concepts, the ashtray isn't an issue. The piece that resides undeer the dash is the simplest. unscrew it, and dicsonnnect the clock (if equipped). Heat if from behind with a head gun and pop the wood off with a screwdriver.

In terms of the center console, once it's completely unscrewed, the heater knobs need to be removed. The black knobs slide on but tend to be glued/stuck in place. depending on their condition, it is possible for them to disintegrate in your hands. Once you get that, and disconnect the lights (ignition, etc) you're good to go.

The last bit is the glove box. That requires a ful disassembly. Based on what's sent back, you'll either be able to screw it on top or replace the full part.

Also, don't just pull on the dimmer knob until it comes off: it won't and you'll damage the dimmer (as I did). Instead, look for the little spring release hole on the side of the knob, which is usually completely filled with funk. At least, I think it's a spring release. Now that I look back, it might have been a very small allen screw. Anyway, once you get that bit undone, the knob comes off easily.

To get the choke knob off, you have to undo the choke cable from the carburetor and pull the whole thing out. It's a bit of a pain, so make sure you do everything you need to while you're under there.

Thanks much! I wouldn't have thought of the heat gun, so that's a big help. Will go to work this weekend to remove panels. They need to be sent to Madera to be copied. Apparently, no two sets are the same. (Imagine that!) They especially need the small panel by the ash tray, as part of this is reused.

Ross, when you pull the choke cable off the carbs just to make it easier to get back in without taking to much of the dash apart and doing the contortionist bit, attach some electrical wire to the end of it and pull that thru as well leaving some in the engine bay and some sticking out the dash, when your ready to put it back reattach to wire and just pull thru.

Nope. It is for sure a spring loaded gizmo of some sort and it won't release even when pushed all the way in. Glued...I don't know, but the Brits are a pain in the ass when it comes to anything electrical. Even the most mechanical part of a switch they make difficult. An Alan screw would have been perfect, but noooooooooooooo...
If somebody has figured out how to remove the panel dimmer would be great. Hummmm...I wonder if the steering wheel puller would work?

The dimmer switch knob is held on with a sllpriing loaded gizmo...you push up on it and pull (hard) onthe knob and it will come off...when you put it back onn, the knob snaps iniplace. If you put brigter bulbs (Delta) in your gauges you can actually see them at night..but the funky dimmer switch by Lucas is a bummer ( real piece of junk) ..either bypass it, or find one from a Jaguar of the 70's vintage which is an esxact replacement fit. A real rheostat that will outlast your car and probably yoiu, too. Junkyards are cheap for them...Jag dealer will want your first born for this 5 dollar dimmer..
The heater levers will come out if you are careful...and when you pull the whole heater and center console out of the car, you will have one helluva time getting the choke cable snaked back into the engine compartment...I suggest a plastic tube or something following it out when you remove it...then you can push the choke cable in it and back into the engine compartment...

Just for what it's worth, I have removed my center console veneer a few times (when replacing the radio and choke cable). I have an early 1974 with the fake wood veneer, so maybe this may be different, but I didn't have to remove the heater knobs. I was able to set the two sliders toward the center of the slot, but not be right on top of each other (let's say the slot is 4 inches wide, so put the top one at about 1 1/2 inches from the left and the bottom one 1 1/2 inches from the right) and they flex enough that you can push the top one down and the bottom one up to sneak them through the slot.

While making new wood dash panels a couple years ago, I removed my non working dimmer controll and relocated the choke cable to that location. It makes no sense to have the key and choke on the same side. You can not crank the engine and adjust the choke at the same time. Not having a dimmer is something I can live without. One of these days I will replace the dash bulbs with the brighter ones. Moving the choke cable also cleaned up the look of the wood panel above the center console. Good luck.

Yeah, when I replaced my headlight switch earlier this year, I just bypassed the dimmer since it had a few dead spots. It's still there, but it doesn't do anything. Even at full bright the dash isn't bright enough, it makes no sense to dim the lights.

Mike, I have contemplated making my own wood dash panels. Since you made yours, you probably know... how complicated is it to make the contour match the car? Are the areas on the dash pretty much flat, or do you have to somehow curve the back?

I'll probably go ahead and get the Madera Concept wood at some point when I've got the rest of the restore done, but I can definitely make my own much more inexpensively if it's not terribly complex as far as shaping the back.

Making your own replacement panels isn't difficult if you are making the same panel. It just takes time and patience. And the right tools certainly helps. It sounds like you do not have wood panels now. I really need to get some pictures posted of the dash I did for my cars.

Mike, Another Arizona Jensen owner. I would like to add your email to our AZ Jensen mailing list if you are interested. Sent you a PM. Time for another Jensen meeting I think.

No, I have the fake woodgrain over aluminum panels. Since it's an early 1974, it has the center console panel, the ones at the bottom of the dash, and glovebox, but not the surround for the instruments.

Here's a look:

My concern was whether the back of the panel is actually flat, or needs to be contoured. I'm fine with cutting out a flat panel and routing the holes and edges and such, but contouring the back, etc. is a bit beyond my woodworking skills. Plus, the one around the ashtray looks a bit more complex now that I look at it.

OK. The back of the panels are flat. At least they were on my cars. I beveled the edges slightly when I made my replacement pieces.

My dash pieces are half-inch plywood covered in a wood veneer. Using a wood veneer is the easiest way to cover the ashtray area. The veneer is thin enough to make the radius bend.

I made the choke cable hole smaller and except for the heater controls faceplate the rest of the openings are simple. The faceplate will need to have a couple of holes countersunk because the pins are not deep enough.

Once you get it all apart you'll see what I mean. The hardest part is finding a wood pattern you like :-)

The dash panels are flat. The dash itself is metal with the finished dash material covering it. This gives you some irregular surfaces and angles to fit and mount to. Be creative. I used 1/4" cherry veneered plywood on the face. Use a pencil to layout the size and shape of the panels on your matirial and cut them a little oversized. This allowed for sanding the edges to the correct final size and shape. Take your time. I glued the glove box panel to a backer panel to get the thickness correct. Layout and cut the holes. The glovebox latch hole was the hardest part. I glued an additional block to the back of the backer after drilling the hole to match the angle of the latch. The block filled the remaining small gap at the botttom of the latch hole. Finally I hand sanded the hole to fit the latch. With a litttle wood filler and a lot of patience the results look and fit pretty good.I used a small chisel to remove some of the material at the backside of the lightswitches as necessary. Stain seal and poly the pieces and you are ready to install. Make sure you seal or poly the backside also. This keeps moisture from bowing or warping your pieces.